In Their Own Words

August 27, 1881

Passage of Hurricane Recorded

John Girardeau Legare of Darien, Georgia recorded the passage of a hurricane in his journal:

“…Gale-We had a terrific gale from S.W. commenced about midday and got gradually worse until about 2 o’clock a.m. Sunday morning when it moderated somewhat. The wind blew about 60 miles an hour at its height. This is said to have been the worst gale since that of 1854. The damage in these parts was not great. Several stores in Darien were unroofed and the roads were rendered impassable. But it played havoc on Savannah river where the wind blew from N.E. driving the water in nine feet deep on the rice plantations. Over 300 Negroes were drowned and a huge amount of property was destroyed.”